It takes a bit to get my dad to tell stories. More than a pint or two. But after a while if you nudge him, he'll start to think and then, if you stay quiet, he'll start to talk. This is one of my favourites. The story of my dad and his fellow traveller in a brief but heart stopping journey.
We were on patrol, looking for rebels. There were five of us. I was in the lead. It was hard going through virgin jungle, maybe three or four miles was all you could do in a day.
There were no tracks, just dense green. It was quiet but not silent, there were the birds and frogs and insects. Spiders as big as your hand and you could not see the webs until you had walked into them. They stuck to your face.
There were no paths, there were just spaces between the trees, but it opened out suddenly into a clearing. There was a pool and plenty of space. A good spot for all kinds of trouble. I stopped and looked around as best I could. I couldn't hear anything unusual.
Then into the clearing walked a tiger. It stared at me, slowly walked towards the pool and took a long drink. It stared at me the whole time. Then it turned around and in two feet I couldn't see it anymore.
I had been in the jungle for a long time and I had been in all kinds of danger, but I had never hugged my gun so tight as when I was sharing that clearing with that tiger.
We were on patrol, looking for rebels. There were five of us. I was in the lead. It was hard going through virgin jungle, maybe three or four miles was all you could do in a day.
There were no tracks, just dense green. It was quiet but not silent, there were the birds and frogs and insects. Spiders as big as your hand and you could not see the webs until you had walked into them. They stuck to your face.
There were no paths, there were just spaces between the trees, but it opened out suddenly into a clearing. There was a pool and plenty of space. A good spot for all kinds of trouble. I stopped and looked around as best I could. I couldn't hear anything unusual.
Then into the clearing walked a tiger. It stared at me, slowly walked towards the pool and took a long drink. It stared at me the whole time. Then it turned around and in two feet I couldn't see it anymore.
I had been in the jungle for a long time and I had been in all kinds of danger, but I had never hugged my gun so tight as when I was sharing that clearing with that tiger.
9 comments:
WOW, quite a story.
Nice story. I love stories from earlier generations.
Your dad is great story teller..
leveller
Yikes, well written, Thank YOU!
That's a great story. I never expected a tiger... somehow I was imagining people, not animals.
diLys and I tried doing that on Saturday but he just let off or shouted "Wha?!" to whatever we said.
Flippin Daddo, like!
PS: who the hell are all these new people?!
PPS: Just realised how I have shattered the feeling and atmosphere you created by telling that story, and I have only one thing to say to you:
LOL!
You write well. Enjoyed this.
Oh, Sian, that was told so very well. Very compelling.
Thank you very much guys.
:)
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